The present invention relates to a method for the manufacture of rigid packets with a hinged lid.
The present invention has particular advantages for the tobacco industry in the area of cigarette packets and their manufacture, the art field to which reference is made directly in the following specification albeit with no limitation in scope implied.
A cigarette packet of the rigid type with a hinged lid is fashioned conventionally from a precreased diecut blank exhibiting a central longitudinal portion, and two lateral portions each consisting in a succession of lateral longitudinal flaps; the steps of the relative manufacturing process include directing the blank along a predetermined path and into a folding unit, then pairing each blank with a relative frame internally of the folding unit and bending the blanks and frames in such a way as to turn out a succession of respective packets.
In general, each packet comprises a container of cupped appearance and a lid, likewise of cupped appearance, hingedly attached to an open top end of the container; the central portion of the relative blank comprises a succession of panels proportioned and positioned to generate front panels, end panels and rear panels of both the container and the lid. The two panels coinciding with the rear wall of the container and the rear wall of the lid are joined on either side to respective longitudinal flaps, which when bent ultimately at right angles to the corresponding panels will constitute an internal layer of a respective side wall of the packet.
Two distinct problems can arise typically during the formation of a packet from a blank as described above: the first deriving from the need for the two side wall inner flaps to be positioned correctly in relation one to another, and in particular the need to avoid overlapping contact between the adjoining edges of the two flaps on either side; the second from the need for the frame to remain positioned correctly in relation to the blank while the blank is being bent and folded.
The object of the present invention is to provide a simple and economical manufacturing method in which the two problems outlined briefly above can be overcome at one and the same time.